億萬富翁投資3000萬美元向阿茲海默症開戰
Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates has joined with fellow billionaires to take on Alzheimer's disease.
Gates, along with Leonard Lauder, the Dolby family, and the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation are committing more than $30 million over the next three years to encourage development of new tests for early detection of Alzheimer's disease.
Last November, Gates invested $50 million in the Dementia Discovery Fund, a venture capital fund that brings together industry and government to seek treatments for the brain-wasting disease.
The most common form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, affects nearly 50 million people worldwide. Alzheimer's erodes memory, motor functions and a patient's ability to live a normal life.
As the U.S. population ages, the disease is expected to afflict more than 13.8 million Americans by 2050.
The funds will be available to scientists and clinicians working in academic settings around the world, charities and biotechnology companies.美國微軟公司聯合創始人和慈善家比爾·蓋茨加入其它億萬富翁向阿茲海默症開戰。
蓋茨、萊納德·蘭黛、杜比家族以及查爾斯和海倫施瓦布基金會承諾今後3年提供3000萬美元用於鼓勵開發早期診斷阿茲海默症的新試驗。
蓋茨去年11月向“癡呆症關懷基金”注資5000萬美元。這是一個聯合產業和政府力量的風險投資基金，目的是尋求治療造成腦萎縮的阿茲海默症。
阿茲海默症是一種最常見的癡呆症，全球有將近5000萬患者。阿茲海默症侵蝕患者的記憶、身體活動功能以及過正常生活的能力。
隨着美國人口老化，阿茲海默症預計在2050年之前將影響1380萬人。
“癡呆症關懷基金”向全世界科學家和參與科研的臨牀醫生以及慈善組織和生物技術公司提供資金幫助。
